Chennai Holiday

This November, I visited the beautiful, but terribly hot city of Chennai to join in the 4^th birthday celebrations of my little niece, Isha.

First Impressions

Although I have visited this city before, it was only during this trip that I really observed a lot. For starters, Chennai has very clean streets, their cops & traffic cops are extremely vigilant and active, they promote a lot of parks and greenery and, last but not the least, there are no ugly sky-walks and, what’s best is that the government has banned hoardings of any kind as a result of which the city is absolutely de-cluttered, unlike Mumbai.

     Another thing to be noted is that there is much to do in Chennai by way of tourist activity. There are huge, beautiful shopping malls, countless options for eating out and many tourist spots to visit. There’s no Amul, but the Aavin and Arun products are positively yummy. Also, the Sarvana chain of restaurants is quite popular among Chennai-ites while those with a sweet tooth can indulge themselves at any of the popular Sri Krishna Sweet stores.

    The only difficulty here is traveling by public transport. Buses are not a good choice as they are forever crowded. There are only a few private cabs but rickshaws abound in plenty. But a word of caution, the rickshaw drivers speak either Tamil or English and do not, as a rule, charge by the meter. They’ll quote the skies so be prepared to haggle and get the price to as low as you can before entering one of these little bumblebees.

    The TTDC here is extremely well organized and offers a variety of tour options to choose from. I opted for two that most suited my schedule.

Hop on, Hop off Tour:

TTDC's 'HOP-ON, HOP-OFF' TOUR BUS

This is an excellent option for anyone who wants to spend a day visiting the maximum number of tourist spots along the East Coast Rd in Chennai. The tour begins at the TTDC office at Vallaja Rd and takes you right up to Mahabalipuram and back. En route it makes a stop at places like Marundeeswar Temple, VGP, Mayajaal, MGM, Dakshinchitra, Muttukudu Boathouse, Thiruvidanthai Temple, Crocodile Bank, Sea Lion Show, Tiger cave, Mahabalipuram & Pancha Rathas. The wonderful thing about these buses is that you can get off at any or all of the above places and spend as much time as you like there. The bus drops you off and moves on. But there’s no need to fret. A hop on Hop off bus stops every hour so you can board and alight as and when you choose.

MARUNDEESWARAR TEMPLE

    My first stop was the Marundeeswarar Temple, said to be the oldest temple in the city, dating back to the Pallava period of history. The presiding deity, Lord Shiva as Marunteeswarar (the Lord of Medicine), is enshrined in the main section.  There is a separate shrine for the Lord’s consort, Goddess Thirupurasundari. It is believed that Sage Valmiki has visited this temple. This temple has exquisitely carved sculptures especially on the stone pillars around the shrine of the Goddess and the mandapam, which belongs to the Vijaynagara age.

Photography inside the main mandapam is prohibited although one is permitted to click away in the courtyard for a fee of Rs.50/-. Like everywhere else in Chennai, the place is very clean and tidy.

    I got off next at the Crocodile Bank which is spread over 3.2 hectares of     vegetation and simply crawls with reptiles. It is the largest crocodile breeding site in India, with several species of African and Indian crocodiles and alligators. The park also maintains several endangered species of turtles, lizards and snakes. Photography is permitted against a fee of Rs.10/-

CROC' SMILES FOR THE CAMERA

 Skipping the Sea Lion show, I headed next to the Pancha Rathas. These shrines were carved during the reign of King Mahendravarman I and his son Narasimhavarman I. Each temple is a monolith, carved whole from a rock outcropping of pink granite. The five monolithic pyramidal structured shrines are named after the Pandavas (Arjuna, Bhima, Yudhishtra, Nakula and Sahadeva) and Draupadi. As noted, each shrine is not assembled from cut rock but carved from one single large piece of stone. The Rathas have an association to the great epic Mahabharata which describes the heroes of Mahabharata with their wife Draupadi which is termed as pancha pandava rathas. The five rathas are:

PANCH RATHAS

 Draupadi’s Ratha This is located at the entrance gate, which is spectacular and simple, shaped like a hut and is dedicated to goddess Durga. Female door – keepers stand on the either ride of the Rath, one holding a bow and another, a sword. At the eastern wall a bas-relief stands portraying Goddess Durga standing on lotus and two worshippers at here feet offering flowers and one of the person’s head respectively. Every other wall has a figure of the great goddess, and at the front of the temple is a Lion’s figure, which is the celestial vehicle of the Goddess.

 Arjuna’s Ratha The next Rath is the Arjuna’s Rath. This one is dedicated to Lord Shiva. This has a small portico and carved pillar stones. Inside the shrine there are no inscriptions or figures whereas on the outer walls. There are carvings of gods and humans. A panel on the northern wall is carved with two door-keepers. Beautiful carvings of Lord Vishnu and a Garuda are on one panel and the other panel has a couple. The eastern wall is carved with a double Dwarka-Palaks, in the middle wall the portrait of Lord Indra riding an elephant, a log standing of the left with has disciples and two beautiful women are perfectly chiseled out. These beautiful carvings hare been praised by many poets. There is also a figure of Nandi bull – which is still left unfinished.

 Nakul & Sahdev’s Ratha In front of Arjuna’s Rath is the Nakula – Sahadev Rath. This is a double decored building, dedicated to Lord Indra – the God of Rain. As in Greek and Roman mythologies, where there are different gods for various aspects and qualified, the Indian mythologies too lane assigned specific gods for different aspects. There is some proof depicting this Ratha to which might have been dedicated to Subramanya associated with elephants. The elephants shaped sculptures face towards the sea. One who enters the Panch Rathas, can visualize the back portion of the elephants and it named as Gajaprishthakara which means elephant’s back side. The elephant sculptures are huge and are highlights of the Panch Raths.

 Bhima’s Ratha This Ratha is faced towards the west and this is the third of the Rathas. The shrine is gorgeous as it measures 42 ft in length, 24ft in width and 25ft in height. The pillars are lion carved whereas the other parts are plain. This Ratha too is an incomplete one.

 Dharmaraj Yudhishtar’s Ratha Of all the five Rathas, this last one stands huge. It is named after the eldest of the pandavas. Innovative and well carved designs can be seen in this Rath. This resembles the Arjuna’s Rath and it is a perfect example to the later built South Indian Temples. This Rath is also dedicated to Lord Shiva like that of Arjuna’s Rath. The ground floor is in complete. Above the ground floor stands the minutely designed second floor. The peculiarity in this monumental construction is that there is no stair route from the ground floor to the first floor, but, there are stairs from the first floor to the second floor. There are eight panels in the ground floor. One panel is carved with the portrait of the king and the rest with gods and goddesses. On one particular wall the figure of Shiva is named ‘Ardhanariswarar’ which is the mixture of Shiva and Shakti. This is very attractive as it depicts the manly structure and the luring female charm. Other portrayals show Lord Shiva as ‘Bhikshatana’ – meaning cosmic designer and the god of death. Twenty two carves are found on the first floor. There is no central pasteurization in the first floor. The portrait of lord Krishna dancing on top of the fierce Kaliya snake is depicted on the southern wall. Lord Vishnu’s portrayal is found on the Northern wall. Carving of a bearded ascetic holding a bell in his hands, a devotee with a tuft, holding a flower basket, a temple attendant with bunch of keys and carrying offering to god are marvelously inscribed. The second floor is well carved. Figures of Dakshinamurthy, somaskanda, the sun the moon and other worshippers all found in this floor.

ARJUNA'S PENANCE

    Once I had viewed these Rathas to my heart’s content, I walked a short distance towards what is known as the Descent of the Ganges or Arjuna’s Penance. Measuring 96 feet (29 m) long by 43 feet (13 m) high, it is a giant open-air relief carved of the a monolithic rock. The monuments and sanctuaries were built by the Pallava kings in the 7th and 8th centuries. The legend depicted in the relief is the story of the descent of the sacred river Ganges to earth from the heavens led by Bhagiratha. The bas relief is situated on a rock with a cleft. Above the cleft was a collecting pool, and at one time, water may have flowed along the cleft. Figures within the cleft are said to represent Ganga or the River Ganges and Shiva. This provides the basis for an alternative interpretation of the mural. Rather than Arjuna, the figure performing austerities is said to be Bhagiratha. He is said to have performed austerities so that Ganga might descend to earth and wash over the ashes of his relatives, releasing them from their sins. To break Ganga's fall from heaven to earth, she falls onto Shiva's hair, and is divided into many streams by his tresses.

In one interpretation, a figure in the bas-relief who is standing on one leg is said to be Arjuna performing Tapas to receive a boon from Shiva as an aid in fighting the Mahabharata war. (The boon which Arjuna is said to have received was called Pasupata, Shiva's most powerful weapon).

One of the notable and perhaps ironic figures in the bas-relief is the figure of a cat standing on one leg (apparently as an austerity). This may be related to the Panchatantra.

    Just a short distance away is the Ganesh Ratha which is the only completed sculpture of the five Rathas. It was earlier dedicated to lord shiva and now it is a shrine of Ganesha. There was a lingam structure earlier and now an idol of lord Ganesha has replaced it. From here one also gets a good view of Krishna’s Butterball, a huge, round boulder that’s balanced on a slope.

KRISHNA's BUTTERBALL

    A few steps ahead of the Ganesh Ratha, you come to the Varaha Gudi. This is a fine completed architecture which lies besides the Arjuna Penance. The entrance has two pillars engraved with two horned lion – bases, and a cell protected by two gate keepers. There are four striking bas-reliefs, the northern one with Lord Vishnu (Varaha-the mighty boar) standing at one feet on top of Naga, the snake king. He is rescuing Prithvi, the goddess earth from the primordial ocean. Varaha triumphed in his attempt and he holds the disc with his upper hands while his lower hands hold Prithvi who is seated on his knees.

The southern wall portrays Lord Vishnu as Vamana (a dwarf sixed Brahmin). He approaches Emperor Bali requesting him to grant him some land to the extent of the expanse of three steps. On Emperor Bali agreeing to his request, Vamana covers all of the earth with one step, the Heavens with the second and then asks Bali for space for the third. Bali, symbolizing the epitome of dharma offers his head for the third step of the reincarnated Vishnu. With Bali’s permission, Vamana steps on Bali pushing him to the netherworld.

Lord Vishnu is portrayed in his cosmic form with eight hands. Along with Vishnu, stand Lord Brahma, Lord Shiva, the sun and the moon. The eastern wall portrays Goddess Lakshmi with two maidens and two elephants pouring water.

The next side has the carving of Goddess Durga standing on a lotus. She is standing under the shade of a royal umbrella.

From this spot, you can also walk to the lighthouse, or do what I did, and stay atop the Varah Gudi and enjoy the view.

    This done, I stopped for some lunch in one of the local restaurants before moving on to the Shore Temple. It is so named because it over looks the Bay of Bengal, which is a beautiful blue-green. It is a structural temple, built with blocks of granite, dating from the 8th century AD.

It is a five-storied structural Hindu temple rather than rock-cut as are the other monuments at the site. It is the earliest important structural temple in Southern India. Its pyramidal structure is 60 ft high and sits on a 50 ft square platform. There is a small temple in front which was the original porch. It is made out of finely cut local

THE SHORE TEMPLE

The temple is a combination of three shrines. The main shrine is dedicated to Shiva as is the smaller second shrine. A small third shrine, between the two, is dedicated to a reclining Vishnu and may have had water channeled into the temple, entering the Vishnu shrine. The two Shiva shrines are octagonal in configuration. The entrance is through a transverse barrel vault gopuram. The two shikharas have a pyramidal outline; each individual tier is distinct with overhanging eaves that cast dark shadows.^[1] The outer wall of the shrine to Vishnu and the inner side of the boundary wall are extensively sculptured and topped by large sculptures of Nandi. The temple's outer walls are divided into bays, the lower part being carved into a series of rearing lions.

The temple has a garbhagriha in which the Sivalinga, is enshrined, and a small mandapa surrounded by a heavy outer wall with little space between for circumambulation. At the rear are two shrines facing opposite directions. The inner shrine dedicated to Ksatriyasimnesvara is reached through a passage while the other, dedicated to Vishnu, faces the outside. The Goddess Durga is seated on her lion vahana. A small shrine may have been in the cavity in the lion's chest.

TIGER CAVE

     Next, I hopped off for a short while to view the Tiger Cave. This is near the coastal village of Salurankuppam, only 5 kilometers to the north of Mahabalipuram. This amazing mandapa contains no tigers lurking in the dark. It actually houses a shrine that is dedicated to the goddess Durga. There are large and impressive figures located in front of the caves. As with most carvings in India, the carvings and figures tell a story that has to do with an event that happened to the presiding God or Goddess, in this case, Goddess Durga.

BRAHMIN HOUSE

     My next stop was the open air museum of Dakshinchitra, literally meaning ‘Picture of the South’. It is also a well known cultural centre for the living traditions of performing arts, crafts and architecture of India, with an emphasis on South India. One can explore seventeen heritage houses, walk along recreated streetscapes, explore contextual exhibitions, interact with typical village artisans and witness folk performances set in an authentic ambience. Be sure to ask for a map of the place at the ticket counter. It’s really handy for finding your way around. I was unfortunate enough to have missed seeing the glass blower in action, but I did purchase a few earthen pots from an old potter and got my fortune told by the Killi Josyalam, a fortune teller with a very cute parrot. The place wasn’t very crowded when I got there and chicken that I am, I was quite frightened to enter most of the houses alone. It was sort of spooky there with the silence and the vast empty rooms. This was more so in one of the Brahmin houses, where there are human-like exhibits of people performing their chores. They look so real that I was almost expecting them to move and speak to me. Brrrrr!

I wandered around clicking snaps of some of the houses and browsing through the artisan’s bazaar where people can purchase many traditional items like bangles, mats, bags and other trinkets. Personally, I think that the items are highly overpriced so didn’t pick up anything from here. Similar items are much cheaper on the streets of Mumbai.

VGP GOLDEN BEACH RESORT

  The last stop on my itinerary was VGP Golden Beach Resort which I didn’t quite fancy much, except for a thing or two. It houses the VGP Universal Kingdom Amusement Park. There is also an aquarium, a replica of Steven Spielberg’s Jurassic Park, which I did not find as it was already quite dark and deserted by the time we got to VGP. Since I was running out of time and money, I only sat on a few rides that were labeled ‘free ride’. In any case, there’s no point in sitting on the rides alone. Apparently, folk dances and musical performances are also held here. What I did really like was the Statue Man. A chap in traditional attire, who stands statue-like on a pedestal. Every once in a while he moves rapidly, frightening the unsuspecting tourist who is standing gazing at him. Someone told me that there’s a reward of Rs.500 for anyone who succeeds in making him smile. I made a pathetic effort, but ran away when he suddenly moved and brandished his sword at us.

    From here it was a long and slow ride back towards the TTDC office. I, however, got off at Marina Beach and walked until I reached Chennai Central, a great big mall where I met my folks for dinner.

Half-day Chennai City Tour:  

This I enjoyed along with my sister and my niece. It’s a fairly nice trip (if you ignore the kosus flying about in the bus) and it took us first to Valluvarkottam which is, I think, a memorial to a great Tamil poet. It’s a garden with an exhibition hall on the ground floor while the first storey leads to a great, big chariot atop which is the shrine to Valluvarkottayam.

    Next we visited the Guindy Snake Park which is a small section of a large forest reserve. Here there are many snakes to look at as well as an education center where one can touch, see and learn more about those legless reptiles. You might even catch sight of a deer or two.

    The Birla Science Centre, our next stop, isn’t as large or fancy as it’s cousin in Mumbai, but the show was interesting.

We then spent some time worshipping at the Kapaleeswarar Temple which is home to Padmanabhaswamy or Lord Vishnu. Photography is not permitted here.

VIVEKANANDAR ILLAYA

    Our last stop was the Marina Beach, which is the longest beach in Asia, I think. I’d say it’s also the cleanest that I have seen, with a lovely promenade and play area. We visited the Vivekanandar Illaya across the street. It used to be an old Ice House, but is now a centre for meditation and a museum/study center for all things about Swami Vivekananda. It’s quite interesting, and very cheap- only Rs.2 for entry.

Ended the day with dinner at a lovely place that serves Andhra cuisine…yum yum!

Church Park. This beautiful place is a large school complex run by the Presentation Sisters. Apart from huge play areas, many trees and ample parking space, this complex houses the Presentation Convent, a chapel, a Tamil medium school, an Anglo-board school, a teacher’s training college, a Social Service Centre and the Sacred Heart English Medium School and Junior College. The latter is a lovely, huge yellow building with dark green doors and windows and has a well stocked canteen for the students. Even the uniforms are quite smart with dark green pinafores and white shirts.

THOUSAND LIGHTS MOSQUE

On traveling through the city you’ll realize that the place abounds in temples with brightly colored doorways and gopurams. Almost every third building you pass is surely a temple. There’s also a pretty little mosque called Thousand Lights, though why it’s called that I never did find out. It’s also quite nice to spend time wandering about in any of the huge malls like Chennai Central and EA that have sprouted everywhere in Chennai.

All-in-all it was great fun and I enjoyed rambling through the streets, gorging on south Indian delicacies and time spent with loved-ones.

              
By the way, Isha’s birthday was a huge success as people down south don’t really do any party stuff at a party. They meet, greet, eat and retreat. Everyone who came to Marry Brown on the evening of November 10^th was quite thrilled with the games, gifts, khoi-bags and dancing. Even the mammas got up to shake a leg and participate in the games.


P.S: Pics' by Misha